Peggy Van Allen, Pratt & Lambert Paints Color Specialist, says, "For 2005, fashion will be a leading influence in home decor. You'll see contrasting colors in combinations like chocolate and aqua, as well as botanical greens paired with subtle pinks. Consumers are embracing color in all shades and families; however we have also seen an emergence of neutral colors to balance the prominence of the bold colors."

Neutrals and bolds are in style. Okay, well, good to have that all cleared up. In other news:

That other color prognosticator, the Pantone Color Institute, has these "forward-looking" palettes in mind. One of them is called 'Refresh,' which is "a palette that evokes the cool morning air, a translucent turquoise lake and the tangy bite of a crisp green apple." Dude, turquoise lake? Green apple! Awesome, cutting edge, yo.

Paint ManufacturersWe're fans of Pratt and Lambert as well as the less known (in these parts) Farrow & Ball, Britain's last traditional paint manufacturer. They're one of the few companies that have all their color samples on their website. Of course you shouldn't rely on the accuracy of your monitor, but it does give you a sense of your choices.

The StadiumBob Herbert has it just right in today's Times. We've already put in our two cents on this ghastly farrago. Interestingly, when we hear from readers in favor of the stadium, it's always without any facts on their side. They just want the stadium (and the 7 train extension, and the Olympics). The City Comptroller calls the project "extremely risky," which suggests to us that the project might be, oh, what? Extremely risky. And the people promising the barrel-load of benefits can't point to many precedents around the country. This is a textbook case of 'if it sounds too good to be true…'